Kids and alcohol hand jel

[OverTheRainbow88]

So I may be overthinking this... but BC ( before corona) I had never used alcohol hand jel on my kids! Had a bottle and rarely used if I had to change a nappy at a park or something. Sometimes would use an antibacterial wipe your clean their hands of at the zoo before a snack.

This morning we went to a playground, before their snack alcohol jelled their hands, once we left I alcohol jelled their hands.

This afternoon we went to the zoo, 4 different playgrounds there, played on them all after each.. guess what.. alcohol hand jelled their hands, then did it again in the car when we left!

Now that’s 7 lots of alcohol jel in one day? Is that excessive? Is it better not to do it? Should I take a flask of soapy water out and use it? Are the chemicals in alcohol jel
Worse than getting corona for a kid?

Sorry that was longer than I expected!!

I always keep a couple of litres of tap water in the boot of the car along with a small bowl, a towel and some hand wash. When you go back to the car with kids after an activity wash their hands, using hand gel is no quicker and washing with soap and water is more effective.

I know it’s harmless but I wouldn’t want a toddler sucking their fingers after using hand gel.

If no access to water for washing then use hand sanitizers gel. If you want to or can carry water and soap then do that. You choose really.

Yea if we go out for a bike ride/walk etc and get home I use normal hand soap and not alcohol gel. It’s when we leave somewhere like a playground and there’s no where to wash hands and I know they’ll both chew their hands in car on the way home!

@Llamazoom

Will try this! Thanks

After a harrowing drive home from Cornwall with a vomiting/pooping out the top of his nappy toddler and no way to clean up I am now always prepared😂

I know in the case of alcohol formulations it has to be minimum of 60% but I guess as this isn't alcohol it uses something else.

The website addresses Covid -

"DOES YOUR NO-GERMS KILL THE 2019 NOVEL CORONAVIRUS (2019-NCOV)?
The above virus is a new strain of the virus. It is so new that it impossible to test at this point as test organisms have not been made available for commercial testing.

However, NO-GERMS has been tested in the past to kill Swine Flu, H1N1, Bird Flu H5N1, MRSA and the actives in our product have been tested positively for killing SARS and Norovirus.

It is likely given the similarities of this Coronavirus to SARS that NO-GERMS will be effective against its spread by hand. Certainty however cannot be possible until tests have been undertaken against this virus specifically following the virus’s release by the authorities.

As noted above the authorities, both the CDC, the World Health Organization and the NHS specifically advise people to wash their hands with Soap and Water or use a hand sanitizer to prevent the spread of this virus. (vii)

NO-GERMS is an alcohol free hand sanitizer, but kills 99.9% of germs for 2-4 hours with actives that remain on the skin to kill viruses and germs, unlike alcohol which stops working the moment it dries on the skin.

Equally, it is recommended to clean surfaces with a good quality disinfectant. (viii) NO-GERMS Fresh and Clean use actives that have been specifically targeted to kill viruses on surfaces and are currently used in NHS hospitals for this purpose."

I'm not affiliated with this product, just breaks my heart that there are parents wrestling with alcohol gel for many reasons when they could use this!

@jimmyhill

It's the evaporation which kills the virus btw...

No it's not. The alcohol destroys the membrane surrounding a bacteria or virus, killing or deactivating it. Then any remaining alcohol evaporates.

You could buy your own portable basin
www.tealwash.com/shop/handeman-xtra-portable/

Wow, I never thought some people do worry about licking applied gel. If they accidentally drink it, sure enough to worry. But just licking?
FYI, my dc has been taking meds that contained alcohol for years, though minimal amount. He seems to have turn out fine.

If using gel with kids watch out for cuts on hands, turns out adding alcohol to these stings! Mine are at age with constant bruises and bumps and cuts on the hands- we were out at weekend and used hand gel - it led to a lot of screaming!

I think the alcohol in hand gels will have had methanol added — that's the dangerous bit, rather than the alcohol itself. You need about 25 ml of methanol to cause any damage though, so hand gel should be fairly safe, unless they drink a whole bottle.

I use a spray, find it much easier especially with dc. I got a big bottle from master of malt, it's a liquid anti bac, and some small spray bottles that I fill up with it. Quick spray of hands and it's dry in a few seconds.

A 500ml bottle for £5 lasts ages too!

I think the alcohol in hand gels will have had methanol added

I've not seen that listed in the ingredients of any we've had. Methanol is used to 'denature' methylated spirits used for other purposes but I don't think it would serve a useful purpose in a gel.

Wash properly in preference to using gel if possible, but use the gel otherwise.

I thought all commercial alcohol (except stuff designed to be eaten/drunk obviously) had to be denatured, so there wasn't a black market trade in it. It might not be as broad as I thought though. I'll check in the morning.

It depends on the brand of hand gel. Those from the likes of Waitrose are quite high quality and are pretty good over ice with a dash of tonic.

If you get cheaper stuff from Asda then you need lot of ice and probably a stronger flavour mixer like ginger ale or coke

OP, look for a hand gel with DENATURED ALCOHOL. That basically means that it contains an ingredient to stop children (and some adults) from ingesting it.

I thought all commercial alcohol (except stuff designed to be eaten/drunk obviously) had to be denatured,

Depending on the use it may be with something like Bitrex which is safe but vile tasting, not methanol.

www.bristolpost.co.uk/whats-on/shopping/hand-sanitiser-urgently-recalled-due-4311584

This was in our local paper today!